ISSUED: 5 December 2017
MEDIA CONTACT: Valerie Owens
SHEPHERDSTOWN, WV — Shepherd University’s IEEE student branch will be able to achieve a lot more this year thanks to a $4,000 donation by Ashburn, Virginia-based BES Technology, Inc. Keisha Burns, a computer information technology major from Hedgesville and IEEE student branch vice president, said the donation will benefit the club and its subgroups, such as robotics and women in technology.
“We’re going to be able to do more workshops, we’re going to be able to buy more parts for our robotics lab, and we’re going to be able to do so many things we were never able to do before,” Burns said. “It’s going to expand the knowledge base of all the students in IEEE and all of the subgroups.”
IEEE is the world’s largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity. BES Technology is a small company that focuses on three practice areas in technology services—contracting, consulting, and product development. BES Technology started an internship program this past summer, and three of the six interns who participated were Shepherd students, including Burns, who is now working as a junior systems engineer for the company.
Paul Buede, BES Technology CEO and cofounder, said the benefits of developing a strong relationship with Shepherd include finding talented new employees. He sees the donation to the IEEE chapter as another step toward that goal.
“We find smaller schools like Shepherd are very untapped by competitors for talent and are good places to build those partnerships,” Buede said. “Finding people who love technology and are good at technology is hard to do. I think people who love and are good at technology at the college level tend to gravitate toward these organizations where they’re not just taking a class, but they’re doing things as well. Investing in that community gives us the ability to find some really great employees in the future.”
The BES Technology donation for the IEEE chapter was made through the Shepherd University Foundation. For information about supporting Shepherd students and student organizations through the Foundation, contact Monica Lingenfelter, executive vice president, at 304-876-5397 or mlingenf@shepherd.edu.
— 30 —
